Pages

Monday, February 8, 2010

Breaking the scales, breaking the budget

They say it’s normal to put on a bit of weight after a baby. Plus we’ve just had the holidays and those famous Christmas calories. But are those valid excuses for the family cat to have put on the pounds?

This week I finally admitted that my cat has an eating disorder. After trying to restrict him to two meals a day (bad idea ‘cause cats graze) and even switching to light kibble, we finally just gave in and left him a plate of normal kibble all day long. It was that or put up with high-pitched wailing every time we came home or looked as if we might head for the kitchen. Sometimes it was so bad I picked him up and “tossed” him into the other room. (Don't worry, no cats were harmed in the writing of this post.) Realizing this was a bad example to set for Juliette, and that Cat-ki definitely was pooching out where he should be lean, I made an appointment with the vet.

Of course, she saw right away that Chat-chat has put on a bit. In fact before Juliette was born and he made his famous leap off the balcony, he weighed about eleven pounds (five kilos). Eighteen months later it’s more like 17 and a half pounds (8 kilos). He’s not diabetic, thank goodness, just very hungry and overweight. As she had told me before, the only solution now, it seems, is the highly expensive diet cat food. Like 50 to 70 euros for an eleven-pound (or a five-kilo) bag. Remi doesn’t want to hear of it, but I think it’s the only way to get Cat-ki to start resembling his pre-baby self and be less pear-like.



Chat enjoying a sun-drenched nap in all his splendor.


So now we’re trying the new sample pack. He’s not too interested in the beige bits and follows me hungrily into the kitchen hoping for something better. He’s out on the balcony as I write this because his constant meowing for food was making me grind my teeth. I’m hoping he’ll come around to the new food because this brand is the cheapest of the three she told me about.

Speaking of eating a little too well, this Tuesday was the Chandeleur, a religious holiday that in France is now crêpe and Nutella day! Something about the crêpe representing the returning sun and some connection to the light of the church from what I could find on the Internet (or something like that). So I made the batter and let it sit in the fridge for an hour and when Remi got home he did the flipping. Finally a French tradition I can get behind! Juliette enjoyed sampling some too. Yes, that’s a belly poking out of those PJs. Let’s hope she won’t imitate Cat-ki in this area.

3 comments:

Crystal said...

love the photos!

Glad you took chat chat into the vet to rule out any illnesses. Each cat must have different eating habits and metabolisms because my cat has kibble available to him all day but he only eats a few mouthfuls at a time (he's also 8kgs but he's a tall cat, and actually his weight in proportion to his size, so says the vet). Chat chat is neutered and an indoor cat, so no wonder he's prone to packing on the weight. Unfortunately the vet prescribed kibble is very expensive and cats find it bland. They dont understand we are trying to help them lol.

The crepe party sounded fun :) I didnt make any this year but now I want some after reading this post!

Jenenz said...

Crepe and nutella day???? Can we have this day in America???? Thankfully, we have a Costco size jar of nutella in the cubbard.

Losing weight is hard for anyone. I guess putting Chat chat on a treadmill is out of the question.

Chad said...

Ugh I have this same problem. One of my cats eats just fine. The other is a big ole pig. The problem is finding a way to restrict the food for one cat, while not messing with the diet of the other. Still no ideas on how to do that.